Ventilating apparatus for railroad-tunnels.



No. 728,685. PATENTED MAY 19, 1903.

C. 1?'. DIETHER. A VENTILATING APPARATUS FOR RAILROAD TUNNELS.

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VENTILATING APPARATUS FOR RAILROAD'TUNNELS.

` APPLIGATLON FILED SEPT. 2s, 1901.

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Patented May 179, 1903-.

PATENT OFFICE.

l CHARLES F. DIETHER, OF ST. PAUL, MINNESOTA.

VENTILATING APPARATUS FOR RAILROAD-TUNLS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 728,685, dated May 19,1903..

l Application filed September 28,1901. Serial No. 76.834. (No n iod'eli)To all whom t may concern:

Beit known that I, CHARLES F. DIETHER, a citizen ofthe United States ofAmerica, and a resident of St. Paul, in the county of Ramsey and Stateof Minnesota, have invented certain new and useful Improvements inVentilating Apparatus for Railroad-Tunnels, of which the following is aspecification.

My invention' relates to improvements in Ventilating apparatus, and isadapted more particularly for use in railway-tunnels, depots, and inmines. In spite of precautions heretofore devised life and property aregreatly endangered by smoke and gas collectingin tunnels, mines, doc.,and itis the purpose of this invention to reduce this hazard.

In the present application my invention is shown applied to arailway-tunnel; and it consists of a conducting passage-way along thetop of the tunnel having chimneys projecting above each end to create adraft through the passage-Way. This passage-way is perforated to receivethe smoke from the locomotive, the perforations being provided withdeflect-ors which project into the passage-way to prevent the escape ofthe smoke into the tunnel. The passage-way is also provided with twopockets on each side below the perforations to collect the gases andsmoke and reduce the opportunity for their return to the tunnel.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is alongitudinal section of atunnel and myimproved apparatus applied thereto. Fig. 2 is across-section of the tunnel and of my apparatus on alarger scale. Fig. 3is a detail longitudinal section of Fig. 2; and Fig. 4 is a longitudinalsection of a tunnel and my im proved apparatus, showing the system ofpiping provided with fans for removing the heavier gases from thepassage-way.

In the drawings let A represent the tunnel; B, the conductingpassage-way; C, the chimneys, and D a system of piping for the escape ofthe heavy lgases when cooled.

The passage-Way is preferably constructed of thin sheet metal, though itis obvious that other material may be used. This passageway conforms tothe top Wall of the tunnel and has an inner wall 2, which is perforatedat 3 to receive the smoke from the locomotive smoke-stack. The sides 4of this inner wall are curved, which form tends to impart a rollingmotion tothe smoke as it escapes from the locomotive and to retain itwithin the passage-way. v

The perforations in the passage-way are provided with deflectors 5, someof which are pointed toward oneV end and the remainder toward the otherend of the passage-way. As shown, the tunnel is slightly inclined, andin such case the deiiectors 6 are turned toward the lower end of thepassage-way and the deflectors 7 toward the upper end. The direc tion ofthe draft through the passage-way varies according to the grade andlength of the tunnel. In a very long tunnel having a slight grade thedirection of the draft is toward the lower chimney S for only a shortdistance and toward the upper chimney 9 for the remainder of the length.The deflectors point to correspond in direction with the draft, and in ahorizontal tunnel half of the deectors point toward one end of thetunnel and the other half toward the opposite end. The perforations areprovided with the walls 10. The surfaces 11 of the Walls 10 directlyopposite the deliectors are slightlyinclined in the direction in whichthe defiectors point. The

passage-way is supported in the tunnel by the brackets 12, which arefastened to the side walls of the tunnel by means of the bolts 13. Othermeans may of course be employed for this purpose.

The pockets in the passage-way form the main channel to the chimneys forthe smoke and gases. The system of piping D is provided for the egressof the heavier gases if they become cold. This system consists of themain pipes 14 and 15, which are laid on the base of the tunnel near eachside, and the branch pipes 16 and 17, which connect the main pipes withthe pockets E and F.

In operation the locomotive G, Which isindicated in broken lineslin Fig.2, enters the tunnel, and the top of its smoke-stack passes directlybelow the perforations 3 in the passage-Way. Thedraftinthelocomotivesmokestack forces the heated smoke through the perforationsand into the passage-way. The smoke and gases may thus pass from thepassage-way through the chimneys.

The defiectors tend to direct the smoke into the pockets of thepassage-way, also to prevent the smoke escaping from the passage- IOOway into the tunnel. The heavier gases when they become cold have egressfrom the passage-way by the system of piping D.

When the tunnel is so long that the natural draft is checked by reasonof the cooling of the smoke before it reaches one of the chimneys, themovement of the column in the pas- I sage-way may be increased by theuse of fires or fans. As illustrated diagrammatically in Fig. 4, therotary fans 18 are placed in the branch pipes 16 and are revolved by theelectric motors 19. These motors are connected with the line conductors20 in the tunnel.

Having described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire toprotect by Letters Patent, is

1. An improved Ventilating apparatus for railroad-tunnels, consisting ofa conducting passage-way having inner side walls for the smoke-stack onthe locomotive to pass between, chimneys projecting above each end ofsaid passage-way; said inner walls being perforated to receive smokefrom said stack, deflectors adjoining said perforations and surfacesopposite said delectors; .said deiiectors and surfaces being inclined inthe direction of the draft in the tunnel to prevent the escape of thesmoke from said passageway into the tunnel.

2. An apparatus of the class described, consisting in combination, witha railroad-tunnel, of a conducting passage-way, means for supportingsaid passage-way along the top of the tunnel, and chimneys projectingabove each end of said passage-way; the wall of said passage way beingperforated to receive smoke from below and provided with deectors abovesaid perforations, which are directed toward each end of the passage-wayto correspond with the pitch of the tunnel and the direction of thedraft in the passage-way.

3. An apparatus of the class described, consisting in combination, withthe railway-tunnel, of a conducting passage-way, along the top of thetunnel, having chimneys projectingabove each end; the wall of saidpassageway being perforated to receive the smoke from the locomotive;the perforations being provided with deliectors which projectlongitudinally into the passage-way to prevent the escape of the smokeinto the tunnel, and a pocket formed on each side of the passageway,below the perforations to collect the smoke and gases and reduce theopportunity for their return to the tunnel.

4. An improved Ventilating apparatus consisting in combination, with therailway-tunnel of a conducting passage-way, means for supporting saidpassage-way along the top of said tunnel, perforations in the wall ofthe passage-way to vreceive the smoke from the locomotive, de iectorsadjoining said perforations some of which point toward one end and sometoward the other end of the tunnel, pockets formed on the sides of saidpassage-way, below the perforations, and a system of piping connectedwith the pockets from below.

5. A ventilator, consisting of a conducting passage way having chimneysprojecting above each end; the wall of said passage-way being perforatedto receive smoke from below and having a pocket on each side below saidperforations, a system of piping, consisting of a main pipe and branchpipes connected to each pocket from below, with fans in said branchpipes, and means for rotating said fans.

6. An apparatus of the class described, con- 'sisting of a conductingpassage-way having a pocket on each side and a curved inner wall, meansfor supporting said passage-way along the top of the tunnel,perforations in said inner wall and above said pockets, deflectorsadjoining said perforations, some of which point toward one end and theremainder toward the other end of the tunnel, and a system of piping,consisting of a main pipe and branch pipes connected with saidpassageway from below, fans in said system of pipes, and meansforrotating said fans.

7. An apparatus ofthe class described, consisting of a passage-wayhaving pockets on each side and a curved inner wall, means forsupporting said passage-way inthe tunnel, perforations in the inner wallof the passageway to receive smoke from below, and deiiectors adjoiningsaid perforations, some of which point toward one end and the remaindertoward the other end of the tunnel.

8. Aventilatingapparatusforrailroad-tunnels, consisting in combination,with a passage-way, means of supporting said passageway along the top ofthe tunnel, a pocket on each side of said passage-way, a series ofperforations in the wall of the passage-,way to receive smoke from belowand deiiectors adjoining said perforations, some of said deflectorspointing toward one end and some toward the other end of the tunnel tocorrespond in direction with the draft in the passage-way.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in thepresence of two subscribing witnesses.

CHARLES F. DIETHER.

Witnesses:

H. H. ONEILL, F. G. BRADB'URY.

